This is a series I will re listen to even with the tears it causes. Virtuous is the final book of the series and after listening I'm a little happier because I heard some things I must have missed. Giovanni is wanting to live at the end. He states that his lost master saved his life but Silvio taught him to live.
From the blurb:
The heart is not commanded.
Giovanni is not sleeping, and he refuses to eat. It's as if he's trying to follow his beloved master to the grave. Silvio is similarly lost as to how to care for his broken-hearted boy, and always there is the haunting sense that his brother is watching, reminding him in subtle ways that he is not adequately providing for his precious schiavo.
But Silvio is determined to be strong, to be the dominant one Giovanni needs and the man he desires in this season of grieving. Together they will forge a new path with virtues unique to their budding dynamic. But even with the discipline, rules, and structure Silvio provides, there is something more Giovanni craves…
Pain.
When Giovanni goes to dangerous lengths to reach his master, all of Silvio’s hard work threatens to unravel. Silvio must figure out a way to soothe his boy, or else Giovanni will succeed in his risky endeavor and be lost to him forever.
Virtuous, the third installment of the Giovanni trilogy, is an introspective MM romance about grief and healing. Trigger warnings for addiction, self-harm, and mentions of past sexual trauma. This audiobook is meant for entertainment purposes only, not as a guide to safe, sane, and consensual BDSM practices.
Reedkaye's Review:
I’m updating my review to include the audio version. I really enjoyed the audio. I feel when the narrator is able to make you feel you are actually listening to the characters the emotion is deeper than reading the book. Daniel Carter brought these characters to life. I also picked up a few things that made me a lot happier at the end of the book. Giovanni made me feel that he had reached a place of being okay. He felt that the master had saved his life but Silvio was teaching him to live. This series is one I will reread even with the tears it brings.
My original book review:
I wanted more since after Giovanni and Master’s Schiavo. I felt the story was unfinished. I’m not sure I wanted nor expected this story, yet it completes the story at this point in their lives. Maybe it is just me but I’m really depressed and now hate to let go of Giovanni.
After Valentin’s death Giovanni is lost. He wants to be with Valentin and appears to be trying to do just that. Not eating nor sleeping and beyond missing Valentin. They were perfect together and with Valentin’s death, Giovanni is heartbroken.
Silvio is supposed to be taking care of Giovanni yet he has no idea what to do. He can’t even grieve himself for feeling guilty of failing Valentin’s wishes that he care for Giovanni. He is nothing like Valentin and cannot provide the same structure Giovanni needs.
Virtuous deals with how these two men deal with Valentin’s death and how they try to put their lives back together. I felt for Silvio because I believe he will never feel confident that he has Giovanni’s heart. The relationship between them will always have Valentin’s strong personality in their thoughts. Yes, they may go on but….
It must have been heart breaking for the author to write this part of the story. It is original and true to life as events would probably play out. It is also why I feel this author is exceptional and is on my short list of authors to follow.
Rating: 5 Stars
Lesetiger's Review:
This is the third book with Giovanni and also this time it broke my heart not only once. I recommend reading or listening to the books in order to understand Giovanni and his pain. I suffered along with him, not only in this book, but also in the first two volumes.
The author wrote the books so well that I was very quickly immersed in the world of Giovanni, Silvio and Valentino. Giovanni did not come out of the last relationship unscathed and Silvio has his hands full trying to stop Giovanni's self-destructive behavior. But he, too, must be able to grieve at some point.
The characters have incredible depth and you can directly feel the pain while reading or listening to them and at the same time hope for a happy ending. I loved Giovanni, but Silvio is also endearing because he has a lot of patience with Giovanni and tries to give him what he needs.
I was happy about the ending, it fit for me. It was wonderful to accompany Giovanni on his journey, even if I needed some tissues.
Daniel Carter made me experience this audiobook very intensely. He was really good at portraying the emotions, the sadness, the pain, but also little joyful moments. He was the perfect narrator for this series and I will gladly look for more audiobooks with him as narrator.
🎧Audiobook Review🎧
Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Performance: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Story: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Virtuous is available to buy from Audible and is Whispersynced.
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